Pahana Warwick
by Zhibrina
Summary: Luke finds himself on a strange prison planet... Is it misfortune? Or the will of the Force? What he finds there may very well ensure the fate of the Rebel Alliance, but is it a fate of fortune or failure? Please R&R.
1. You'll have to do

Disclaimer: this is based off of Star Wars in the time of Luke and Leia, after the fall of the Emperor, and takes place after the Star Wars book The Truce at Bakura by Kathy Tyers

Spoilers: none, though a few references to Bakura; other than that, it's all me

Other: SUMMARY ABOUT The Truce at Bakura, just in case you want some footing about the book:

Truce at Bakura is a riveting action packed tale of the days directly after Return of the Jedi. Luke injured by the Emperor during the final battle aboard the Death Star II, is receiving treatment for those life threatening electrical convulsions you see him go through, when he receives a visitation from the spirit of Obi-Wan Kenobi bidding him to go to Bakura which is in great danger. So Luke in command of a task force with diplomats Han and Leia in tow heads out to Bakura. It was interesting to see Luke Skywalker in command of a military force, something not seen in any of the other Star Wars books. At Bakura our heroes find Imperial forces about to be destroyed by soul sucking aliens. In the interests of the innocents enemies join force and the fun begins. The battles both on land and in space are well written and the story is great. Love, death, betrayel, everything a Star Wars reader could possibly want is here. Han's gloating over the defeat of the Empire at Endor in front of Bakura's Imperial governor is classic, Leia's confrontation with the spirit of Anakin Skywalker is an imporatant aspect to the story, while Luke's romantic feelings for a lovely Bakuran senator are a humanizing influence on a character too often viewed as above human emotions

* * *

Luke found his mind drifting to the lovely Gaeriel Captison. Luke shook his head. _Forget about her Luke... She's a senator Bakura, a planet on the outer reaches of the galaxy... Besides that, she's religiously opposed to the Jedi Order... and Yoda says you're not allowed to fall in love... What harm could falling in love do? It's not like any harm ever came of it--_

"General Skywalker?"

"Oh, yes?"

"Princess Leia requests that you bring your fighter in and meet with her."

"Tell her I'll be right there." In his thoughts, Luke had almost forgotten the reason he was out in the X-wing to begin with--to scout. "Oh, and I'm sending you a scan report. I picked up a few traces. Please transfer the data to her."

"Yes, sir."

* * *

"What did you need, Leia?" Luke walked into his sister's personal office.

Han, leaning back in a chair, took his feet off of Leia's desk. "Took you long enough, kid. Oh, and _thanks_ for the scans. They were _very_ helpful after everyone else had already turned in theirs of an even broader sweep."

"What happened, Luke." Leia's face held genuine concern.

"Just thinking. About stuff."

Han grinned. "I bet _I_ know who--"

"So, what did you need Leia?"

"While you picked up a few traces, the others came back with a full report of at _least_ a dozen Imperial fighters in the area."

"Have they detected us yet?"

"Not as far as we can tell. It worries me, though. We can't seem to find their base."

"We'll find it. If, when, we start blasting each other, at least one is bound to run off. I'll chase it."

"No one can keep up with you. Be sure to stay in radio contact."

"No problem. Do you still need R2."

"Yes; we're still working on processing all the data from Bakura. Take one of the other droids. You'll be fine."

"Alright. See you two at launch. Call me if you need anything else. I'll be in my room. I have a few tweeks to work out in my hand."

"See the med droid if you need anything severe done to it. Those things aren't easy to make and you've destroyed enough already." Leia flashed him a big smile.

"Okay, I will." As he walked out of the door, he shouted over his shoulder, "You two behave."

"Do we _ever_?" replied Han with a grunt of a laugh.

* * *

"Oh, Master Luke, you really should not be doing that!"

"Chill out, 3PO." Luke peeled back the artificial skin on his mechanical right hand. The nerves weren't working quite right. "Won't take much. On a few changes of the wires and--OW!" Luke hastily undid what he had just done. "Maybe I will see the medical droid."

"Stay in here and rest, Master Luke. We will send for him."

"No, it's okay. I need to see Doc about my therapy anyway." Luke was still having a small bit of difficulty with the after-effects of his electricution at the hands of the Emperor--now dead, thanks to the redemption of his one evil father, Darth Vader, rather Anakin Skywalker. _The hand could get to be a problem though. I'll need another repair kit..._

"Master Luke?" asked a tentative voice from behind him.

Luke didn't even have to look. He could sense the Force flowing strongly in the boy. "What can I help you with, Tuari?"

"When can I learn to use a lightsaber?"

"When you're a little older."

"But that's what you said two days ago!"

Luke couldn't help but laugh. The boy, no more than five years old, was an orphan they had found on Tatooine a while back. He was very strong in the Force--at lease the strongest that Luke had seen in any of his years in the knowledge of the Force--so Luke took the boy in as his pupil, his padawan learner (as Master Yoda had described it). "When you can bring that 20 pound weight to you from across the room, then I will teach you."

"But it's so heavy..."

"Weight has nothing to do with it. You must simply let the force flow through you. Then, almost anything is possible."

"Yes, Master..." The boy sighed and headed to his room--which was little more than a sectioned of quarter of Luke's own room. With all the soldiers, rooms were precious scarce. Tuari turned around abruptly. "I almost forgot!" He ran back to Luke and hugged him tightly. "I love you, Master."

Luke smiled and returned the small boy's embrace. "You too, Tuari. Now off with you."

"Yes, Master!"

_What a kind and gentle boy. If only all beings were more like him. _Luke smiled again, thinking of the boy_... I wonder if this is what it feels like to be a father..._ But he quickly drew his mind from the thoughts because he knew before long, he would start thinking about why he would never _be_ a father. And since such thoughts saddened him, he pushed them to the back of his mind.

* * *

Luke pulled out his repair kit and tinkered with it for a while, waiting for the go to launch. After hurting himself several times, a man came across the comm. "Are you ready for departure, sir?"

"Yes."

"Proceed."

"Luke?"

_Leia?_ "Yeah?"

"Be careful."

"Aren't I always?... I will. I promise." Did Leia sense something? She was actually starting to come into her Jedi powers and becoming more aware of the Force--with her senses especially. Luke had already taught her a great deal about fighting with a lightsaber, even helping her make one of her very own.

* * *

They quickly killed off the Imperial fighters. "Luke to control."

"What is it?" It was Leia's voice.

"I saw one of the ships flying in the direction of that small moon over there. Don't know if anyone got it. I'm going to go take a look."

"Be careful. Radio in as soon as you land."

The moon was bland, more like an overly-large asteroid. "Luke to control. I'm landed. Do I need to check in anymore, O concerned sister of mine?" Luke asked with a short laugh.

"Very funny, Luke. Just check in every hour. If you have to, you can send a comm call from a hand-held and have the droid transmit the message to us."

"I'll do that. Luke out."

"Control out."

* * *

Luke shook his head. It had been several hours and the scanners weren't picking up anything. Sighing, he made his way back to the ship. "Luke to control. Returning to the ship."

"Copy that, General Skywalker, sir. We will await your arrival."

Luke lifted the X-wing off the surface of the moon. The moon had rotated so much that he would have to fly around the planet to get to the ship.

_BANG!_

A blast rocked the X-wing. The damage report was minor enough. Luke turned the X-wing around to face two Imperial fighter. Luke shot one dead on. The other turned around and fled. Luke, of course, pursued it.

* * *

Leia ran into the control room. "Where is he?"

"We don't know. He said he was returning shortly over an hour ago, but he hasn't yet. We can't pick up his signal either."

"Orbit the moon and try to see if we can find anything."

A while later, the comm officer called the pacing Leia back over. "Nothing shows on the surface, mam. Though, there are the remnants of an Imperial fighter."

"Any other traces? Signals?"

"No, mam. None."

* * *

"What the--! This guy doesn't know where he's going! I don't even think he has his scanners on!" The fighter had been staying just barely out of Luke's range for a long while, but now the little bugger was running low on fuel. Luke sped up marginally. "I've got you now!" Luke sent a blast, but--out of despiration--the Imperial fighter managed to get off one last shot; however, while Luke's shot hit dead on (turning the fighter into a ball of flame), the Imperial's shot did not make critical impact. "It looks like we made it--" He started as a wing to his left burst into flame. Luke cursed and tried to make all the adjustments he could. "It's no use! I'm going to have to emergency land." He was lucky enough to find a habitable planet--hot, but habitable. "You'll have to do..." 


	2. Jedi Prison

Luke cursed. The X-wing was busted and buried in sand, the droid destroyed, the comm system offline, his locator beacons disabled, and he was stranded on a desert planet not that much differet than Tatooine. Luke tried to reach out with the force, but _something_ was blocking him. _A barrier? To the Force?_ Luke sighed. _I never sent out any messages saying where I was going... Yoda and Ben would kill me... And what would my father say?_ Luke cursed again. At least he had his long-range scanners. _For a while, anyway..._

_Bleep. Bleep. Bleep..._

The scanners showed a small settlement about a mile and a half due east. Luke gathered what provisions he could, covered his face and neck with a sand-colored blanket that he knew he would need in the chill of the fast-approaching night and as cover from enemies, and walked off due east with the short-range scanner in hand.

The sun was so hot and the sand so deep that it had been three days already. _Almost there... almost there..._ Luke had no more water left, no more food, and discovered that he had received several wounds during the crash-landing. While they were small, they soon became infected. A scratch on his arm turned to a burning rash, the cut on his lip turned to a burning boil, and the minor wound to his lower chest transformed into a deep, festering wound that began to eat away at his flesh. The scanner _bleep_ed a last few times then shut completely lost. By its last recording, Luke had less than a quarter of a mile left. The chill of night fell and Luke collapsed in the sand.

* * *

The two Imperial troopers looked at each other. "A broken-down Rebel fighter? There's no body. Is the person even alive still?"

"No short-range scanners are left. Maybe the person used it to track us. We should head in a stright line back to the base and look hard for anything awry."

On their way back, a quarter of a mile away from the base, one of the troopers looked around. "What was that?" He guided his speeder bike back around. "See, there's something there. That lump just moved." The trooper was soon joined by him companion. "Cover me." The other trooper raised his gun as the first one pulled on the canvas. "He looks horrible."

"Bind him. He's a Rebel. We'll take him back to the base to be with the other prisoners."

"He's not quite like _them_."

"It's fine. A Rebel is a Rebel."

* * *

"Who is that?" asked Captain Carnig.

"A Rebel. That ship we detected was an X-wing class Alliance fighter. We found this man wandering the desert, apparently using a scanner to try and find us. It seemed like a desperate move just to find other people, not to attack us."

"Very well. Heal him up a bit and put him with the rest--" He glared at the staring faces from behind the large, single-cell prison to his left. "Leave us be. Go out into the grounds or something."

Captain Cernig turned to discuss other matters with the two troopers.

The prisoners in the cell began to whisper amongst themselves.

"Did you feel his power?" asked a green-skinned woman with tentacles growing out of her head. The Twi'lek young woman shook her head. "There hasn't been a force that strong since the Emperor and his apprentice took over the Jedi halls."

A Cerean man nodded his head. "He is stong, indeed. And he can't be any more than ten years younger than even the oldest of us..."

"You have to consider that we were taken at a young age," stated a human man.

A human woman shook her head. "He must have been a baby when Palpatine rose to power..." They looked back at the Imperials quietly searching the young embodiment of the Force.

The trooper who had taken the blanket off of Luke called out, "Captain Carnig, sir!"

In a bored tone, Carnig asked, "What is it now, Borka?"

Borka held up Luke's lightsaber. "He's one of them, sir."

Carnig sighed. "So that's why the prisoners acted as they did. They can sense their own... Clean his wounds and dress them. We want him alive for the Emperor when he returns to claim all the prisoners. After that, throw him in the cell with the rest of them. They can tend to him further."

* * *

_Luke felt a searing pain in his stomach. Did someone find him? Were they trying to heal him? He couldn't come out of his meditation just yet if he wanted the effects of the self-healing to last. They would have to wait for him to regain consciousness. Who had found him? Were they friendly. He hoped so. But why would the Empire have an outpost all the way out here. It's lightyears away from any easy communication..._

* * *

"Is he doing any better, Hateya?"

The green-skinned Twi'lek young woman turned around to face the Cerean man. "I believe he's meditating, Alden--healing himself. But yes, he does appear to be doing better."

"That's good, very good. He is powerful indeed. He feels almost like Master Kenobi's apprentice, the one that disappeared. Poor lad..." Alden shook his head. "Either way, he's been out for almost a week."

"But his wounds are almost healed; that is fast, even if they will still leave a scar. You are the eldest among us, Alden. What do you think happened to infect his wounds so badly?"

"The sand bacteria must have gotten to him. They are the only infection that can survive in this infernal heat."

The young man laying in the bed stirred. "I think he's waking up, Alden." Hateya looked into the young man's eyes as they gradually opened. "Hello, young Jedi. What is your name?"

He shifted his position and half-way sat up. "Luke..." Luke rubbed his eyes and gazed at the graceful and elegant figure of the Twi'lek woman. "...Luke Skywalker."

"I am Hateya. This is Alden."

"Is he up?" asked a human as he walked over to the corner where Luke was stretched out. Seeing that he was, he stuck out his hand. "My name is Eron. Did you say your name was Skywalker?"

"Yes."

Eron turned to Hateya. "It looks like you were right, Hateya. He _does_ feel like Master Kenobi's old apprentice." Eron turned back to Luke. "Do you know Anikin Skywalker? Is he a relative?"

"I would say he's deffinately a relative. He's my father."

Eron, Hateya, and Alden glanced at eachother.

Luke smiled. "Yes, he did break the rules. He was married and my mother had my sister and me just as the Empire rose to power."

Alden nodded his head. "I was right about your age then. So you were never trained by a master?"

"Yes, I was. Masters Kenobi and Yoda trained me."

"They are still alive?" asked a human woman who ran over to where Luke was. A crowd started to gather.

"Not anymore, I'm sorry to say. Kenobi died at the hands of Darth Vader and Yoda simply died of old age. But I learned much from them." Luke sighed.

"What about Anikin?" asked the human woman.

"Did you know him?"

"Yes. My name is Perdita. I was well aquaintanced with him when his was but a young padawan, but we lost track over time. Rumor has it that he was taken captive by the Imperial troops."

"That's one way of putting it." Luke didn't feel like revealing much about his father yet, so he quickly asked. "Is there anything to eat?"

"Here. It's the best we have," Hateya offered him a small bowl.

Luke grimaced at the goo. It reminded him of Yoda's cooking. But he was hungry enough to eat anything. "So, where am I?"

"The planet of Pahana Warwick, Pahana for short. It is a Jedi prison," answered Hateya.

Luke almost choked. "A prison? For Jedi?" He looked around the large cell. "Then... you are all Jedi? Masters?"

"Not masters, no. We were taken from Coruscant, the home of the Jedi Order, when we were but young trainees, not even assigned a true master to teach us yet. Most of us were anywhere from four to six, except for Adlen, who was ten. Since we were so young, they decided not to kill us. The original purpose of this prison was to change us over to the Dark Side, but it didn't quite work out, as you can see. Are you a master?"

"The only true one left out there, or so Yoda and Obi-Wan told me."

"Then you are our senior, even if not by years. What could you teach us?"

"...Well, I doubt I would make a good teacher, but--"

A man in an Imperial uniform unlocked the prison door, and a captain stepped in. "I see you are awake and fed. Come. You will answer questions."

Luke didn't feel like fighting and followed the man out into the room that lay in full view of the cell.

"Sit."

Luke complied. _I wonder if they know that the Empire has fallen... Probably not... Best break it to them easy... But that doesn't mean I can't have a little fun..._ Luke suppressed a grin.


	3. It has fallen

"I am Captain Carnig. You will respect my authority. What is your name?"

"Luke Skywalker, Jedi Master."

"Who bestowed that title upon you?" scoffed Captain Carnig.

"Master Yoda, Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, and even Darth Vader and the Emperor recogized its validity." The gasps from the cell and the dumb-struck faces of the Imperials in front of him confirmed that Luke had gotten the reaction he had aimed for.

Carnig quickly regained himself. "You would be dead if you faced the Emperor, or Vader."

"I'm afraid that you have it all wrong... When was the last time you heard from the Emperor, or any Imperials for that matter?"

"They check in every five years. They are expected to contact us at any moment."

"I wouldn't count on that."

"What do you mean by that?" Carnig hit Luke smartly across the cheek.

Luke flexed his jaw but a little, and smiled. "You really don't know, do you? No one has contacted you?"

"About what!" Luke could see the veins popping out of the captain's temple and neck.

"About the Empire." He leaned forward a tad and spoke a little softer, "It has fallen."

"You lie!"

"No, I do not. Granted that various Imperials are interspersed throughout the galaxy, the Emperor is dead, as is Vader."

"How do you know?"

"I was there."

"And I suppose you're going to tell me that you killed them both."

"No. Vader killed the Emperor."

"You insolent--" Carnig thwacked Luke across the face again. That time, it actually hurt, but Luke didn't show it. "Do not lie about--"

"I'm not lying."

"And why would Vader kill the Emperor."

"Do you want the truth, or what you want to believe, because the _rumor_ is that Vader killed the Emperor for power, but was killed by the Emperor with the Emperor's last ounce of power."

"That seems more plausible than anything _you_ could work up. What is _your_ story then?"

"I fought Vader and defeated him, but left him alive. The Emperor started to electricute me, to kill me. Seeing the Emperor's cruelty, Vader turned from the Dark Side, reverting to his former self before he became Darth Vader. He threw the Emperor into the depths of the ship, but not before getting electricuted himself. So, he died."

" 'Seeing the Emperor's cruelty'? That would imply that _Darth Vader_ actually cared about _you_."

"He did."

Carnig hit Luke again, this time drawing blood. "What! Why!"

"Have I told you my history, Captain?"

Caught off-guard, Carnig froze, finally getting out a simple "no".

Luke half-way turned around in his chair. "I'm about to answer your question, Perdita. Listen up." He turned back to Carnig. "I am Luke Skywalker, son of Anakin Skywalker, former student of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Anakin Skywalker was seduced by the Dark Side and ceased to be Anakin. He became the Emperor's apprentice. Anakin Skywalker became..." Luke looked squarely into the captain's eyes. "**_Darth Vader_**."

"You lie!"

"Look into my eyes--" Luke's glare intensified. "--and tell me I'm lying."

"Y-you're serious... Vader is your father..." Carnig swallowed, once again, composing himself. "But you are lying about the fall of the Empire. I know you are. No one can defeat the Emperor. Vader may be dead, but never the Emperor." Carnig punched Luke in the stomach and turned to the two troopers who had found him, smiling as Luke doubled over on the floor. "Borka, Caden, return him to the cell."

The two of them roughly drug Luke back to the cell and threw him in. Everyone backed away. After a moment, Hateya stepped forward and started silently helping Luke clean his wounds. "You said that Anakin turned back to goodness before he died? That's good."

* * *

Luke got his meal the next morning--the same goo as he had had the day before--and sat down in a corner in the outdoor grounds.

"Aren't you hot? This corner is vacant for a reason."

"Hey, Hateya. It doesn't bother me. I grew up on Tatooine." He adjusted his new clothes. His others had been torn up beyond recognition, so he received one of the old outfits they kept at the prison. Luke actually didn't mind. They were an old style, but still decently comfortable.

"It doesn't bother me either. I grew up in a hot part of Ryloth." Hateya sat down next to him. "Those clothes you were wearing under your flight suit, they were odd."

"These clothes I've been given are odd."

"They are the style of the Jedi before Palpatine proclaimed himself Emperor."

"The brown cloak reminds me of Ben..." A faint smile found its way to Luke's lips.

"Ben?"

"Oh, sorry. When Obi-Wan went into hiding, he adopted the name 'Ben' and found his home on Tatooine. Now I know that he was there to protect me from Vader."

"Your father?"

"Vader is not my father; Anakin is."

"Not much of a distiction," Eron said with a grunt, settling himself on the sand next to Hateya.

"There is. They were two completely different people..."

Alden walked over and joined them. "And you were able to bring Vader out of the depths of darkness to realize his true self as Anakin once more. That is no small feat."

Perdita sat down to finish the small circle created by the other four already in the corner. "I suggest you practice with your lightsaber in exercises today, Luke."

"They let you have your lightsaber here?" Luke asked in dismay.

"Yes, but only to keep in shape for exercises; plus, they have eight troopers all with long-range blasters aimed at your head."

Luke tried to loosen the muscles in his neck and shoulder. Realizing how stiff he really was, he nodded. "I guess I'll do that, Perdita. What do you do for exercises?"

"It's simple. One person at a time can exercise with the lightsaber for ten minutes each. You will work with a training remote--I assume that you've worked with one before."

Luke nodded, thinking back to his time on the _Millenium Falcon_ with Han and Obi-Wan. Back then, he had thought the training remote was too difficult. "Yes, I have." He swallowed the last bite of his food.

Alden reached out his hand. "I'll take that for you. Go on over to that table. They'll give you your lightsaber there."

"Thanks." People moved out of Luke's way as he walked to the table. _And all because my father had been Darth Vader... Then again, maybe their reaction is understandable... Leia didn't take it too well when she found out..._ After waiting for two other people to go ahead of him, he stepped up.

"Lightsaber number," demanded the trooper.

"Excuse me?"

"He doesn't have one yet," yelled Alden from the shade where he and the others had moved. "He's the new prisoner."

The trooper handed Luke his lightsaber. It felt good to be in his hands again. "Your number is G-17. How many training remotes would you like."

"How many am I allowed to use?"

"Up to six."

"I'll take six."

The trooper looked thouroughly surprised. "Would you like a blindfold too?"

"Of course."

Luke used the Force to move the six training remotes into position. The training area was a small circle with a diameter of only eight feet, but Luke was confidant that it would be sufficient. A crowd gathered around the training circle.

"... trying to show off..."

"... get himself stung by the blasters..."

Luke took in a deep breath, turned on his glowing green lightsaber, and used the Force to turn on all the devices simultaneously at their highest level. It was actually almost a challenge, and by the time his ten minutes were up, his shirt was drenched in sweat from the mid-morning heat and the crowd's mouths were hanging open. Hateya forced her way through the crowd, followed soon by Alden, Eron, and Perdita. Hateya threw her slender arms around Luke's neck. "That was **_amazing_**, Luke! Simply **_amazing_**!"

Eron shook his head. "You really _are_ a Master, aren't you?"

Luke shrugged. Hateya released him and went to claim her own lightsaber. "P-07, two remotes, blindfold."

As the purple glow of Hateya's lightsaber began to blur with the exercises, Luke looked up at the sky. _Leia, I'm alive. I'm here. Why haven't you found me? Have you given up? Leia..._


	4. A new sith

The Rebel ship had made base by orbiting around a local planet, Mansur. The Masuriens were a secretive race with humaniod bodies, clear skin, and varying (and rather unique) powers of sorts. If they would but cooperate with other beings, they would make powerful allies.

"Luke's out there, Han! I _know_ it! I can **sense** him!"

The command room was silent.

"Can you sense exactly _where_ he is, Leia? We don't have any more time to search for him. People need us. Coruscant has summoned us. There are rumors of a new sith. Luke would want us to go."

Leia's shoulders sagged and Han gently embraced her. "But I can't just _leave_ him, Han... He's my brother..."

"I know, Leia. And we won't give up. That sense of yours, does it tell you Luke's okay?"

Leia nodded.

"Good, then let's make our way to Coruscant, handle the problem there, then we can come back... Besides, there's not much that that kid can't handle on his own..."

Leia turned around to face the ship officers. "Break orbit around Mansur. Set course for Coruscant."

* * *

Luke sat up on his pallet. Hateya was sitting in a corner, reading by candle-light. She looked up at the moon. _It's barely past midnight..._ "What is it, Luke?" 

Luke took a deep breath. "I sense a disturbance in the Force..." _And I'm sure that Leia would've gone after it... Good._

"What kind of disturbance? Is it the Emperor?"

"I know all of you are having a hard time accepting it, but the Emperor is dead--of that I am certain. No... this feels different..." _I hope Leia, Han, Tuari, and everyone else will be alright..._ Luke gave Hayeta a meek smile. "Everything's alright." He laid back down and went back to sleep. But it was a restless doze. At dawn, Luke rose out of bed and walked out to the grounds, staring off to the east until most of the other prisoners were awake.

"Luke...?"

Luke turned around. "Oh, good morning Hayeta."

"Here, thought you'd like something to eat." She handed him a bowl.

"Thank you. I appreciate it."

"What are you doing?"

"Just thinking."

"About your life... _out there_?"

Luke nodded. "My friends and family... Leia, Han, Tuari--my padawan..." Luke shook his head.

Hateya furrowed her brow at hearing the definately feminine name 'Leia', but let the expression fade in moments, before Luke could even see it. "I feel you using the Force."

Luke smiled. "Trying to focus the Force within me. It's good for control."

Hateya scrunched her nose, but shrugged. After a while, she spoke again, "I thought you would like to know that today is wash day, and to warn you that there's not much privacy. There is a screen, you undress behind it, they dump water on you, you wash with sandsoap, they dump more water on you, you rinse, they let you put on your trousers, then you leave from behind the screen and proceed to get fully dressed."

"Thanks for the warning."

* * *

Luke stepped from behind the screen and re-attached his false right hand. Everyone was staring at him. "What?" 

Eron stepped forward. "Your body... It's covered in scars... And your hand..."

"I've been in many battles." Luke shrugged on his shirt and left to stand on the grounds and stare out into the east.

Hateya stepped up next to him. "Even when we were tending to your injuries, we did not see the extent of how scarred you were." After a pause, she asked, "How did you loose it? I mean, your right hand?"

"Vader."

"Your own father--!"

"I said Vader, not Anakin."

"But..."

"They may have shared a body, but their minds were lightyears apart."

Several others joined Luke by the gate facing east. Eron cleared his throat. "We heard you felt a disturbance... In the Force."

"Yes. A strong one."

"Anywhere near?"

"No, but it is not to be shrugged off."

Buthain, a human man and one of Eron's friends, snorted, "Then we won't have to worry about it. It's not like we're getting off this forsaken planet."

Luke allowed himself a faint smile. "I've been in worse..." He turned around to see a crowd starting to gather around a guarded trap door. "What's that?"

"That would be The Pit--for long-term isolation." Hateya grinned. "They must be letting Ezhno out."

Minutes later, Ezhno surfaced and was set free of the confines of the pit. Many people patted him on the back, or cheered, or spoke words of encouragement to him as he slowly, and calmly, made his way from the pit and towards Alden, who was now standing to Luke's left. His red, white, and complexion and the horns growing out of his head told Luke that he was a Togruta. _NOTE: picture: http/en. (this is a female togruta, but u get the general idea_

Ezhno spared Luke a respectful nod, asking Alden who the newcomer was with the questioning look in his eyes.

Alden nodded to him. "How are you."

"Well."

"This is Luke. Luke _Skywalker_."

"Son of Anakin?" he asked Luke.

"Yes."

Ezhno nodded. "You look like him, and your mother."

"So I've been told."

"What are you doing here?"

"My starfighter crash-landed here, and for now, I'm stuck." Over lunch, practically the entire camp took the liberty of telling Ezhno absolutely everything they had learned about Luke or seen him do.

Ezhno merely nodded again after all had been told--and after Luke had set all the facts straight. "Then you are one of the disturbances in the Force I felt. There were two others, one about the same time as when I felt you. The person felt _very_ much like you."

"It was probably Leia. I may have mentioned her to you before, Hateya."

"You did."

Luke caught a hint of disdain in her voice and forced himself not to laugh, but a slight grin did escape him. "She's my twin sister."

Hateya arched her brow. "Your sister? You never mentioned _that_?"

"You never asked."

"You said her name with such passion and longing... I never considered a sibling..." Hateya flushed slightly, then cleared her throat. "I was raised never to meddle in the affairs of others."

Ezhno cut in. "Then she is strong in the Force?"

"Very strong; she just doesn't know it quite yet. What about this other disturbance?"

"Much darker, and much farther away."

This time, Luke nodded. "I have sensed that one, too. A new sith." Luke turned to face Ezhno directly. "You felt it when the Emperor was killed, didn't you?"

"Yes." He motioned to the distant, more deserted, part of the grounds. "Shall we walk?"

Luke nodded and the two headed off apart from everyone else. "No one else here is really strong in the Force, are they?"

"No, not compared to you and me. But, then again, we are both extremely powerful, you even moreso. Tis not fair for us to compair them to me and especially you."

"They are all decent with a lightsaber, though."

"That they are." For the first time since Luke had met him, Ezhno smiled. "So when are you planning on escaping?"

"What?"

"Do not think that I am unable to sense what you are doing."

"It's a rough plan right now. I haven't really worked it out yet."

"When you do, I will be ready to help. But it must be swift and sudden if we are to succeed. Until then, try not to attract unnecessary attention to your already vast skills. What you did with the lightsaber is alright; it proves your abilities to the others. But refrain from doing much more than that."

"Understood."

_

* * *

hey, everyone. i was wondering if u could review and let me know how you like it thus far. thnx! _


	5. Gaeriel

_The italicized part later on a dream sequence, just to forewarn you. This is MY version of how "Truce at Bakura" ended. I find it vastly more entertaining ;P But it serves a purpose. It also shows where he got all the scars from that Hateya was referring to._

* * *

Luke sat meditating in the corner. Hateya sat across from him, trying to meditate, and not succeeding, instead focusing on Luke's features. Alden sat to Luke's left and Hateya's right, trying as hard as he could to meditate, and succeeding, but not _nearly_ as deeply as Luke since young Skywalker's symbiosis with the Force far surpassed his own. Eron sat across from Alden, already totally giving up on meditating, and sleeping. 

Luke's breath began to come in rasps, sweat pouring down his face and trickling down his back. He tried to ignore the tickling sensation that the sweat on his back was causing, and the sting of sweat in his eyes, but he kept his senses out there. _So... I was right..._

"Luke!"

Luke abruptly came out of his thoughts to stare up at Hateya hovering above him. He looked beyond her--staring up at the sky. "What happened?" he asked calmly, sitting up.

"You began to breathe heavily, then you paled. After a while, you gave out a shuddering breath and fell back. What were you doing?"

"... Too much."

As Ezhno walked by the group on his way to the exercise line, he nodded at Luke. "Best you be careful in how much of your power you use."

Eron cocked his brow. "He's showing concern for you? He never shows concern for _anyone_. Either he likes you a lot, or you were using far more power then any of us could ever know--or both." Eron shook his head. "I know the Jedi code says 'There is no emotion...', but he takes it a bit too far."

"It's just his personality." _Besides..._ thought Luke ... _I know that it was a different kind of warning..._ "What is the full Jedi Code? Masters Yoda and Obi-Wan never told me."

"_They_ never you the _Code_!" Eron practically yelled.

"They were a _little_ preoccupied. We were only in a war with Darth Vader, the Emperor, the Imperial ARMY, with only a few **weeks** to train me."

"...Oh..."

Alden spoke up. "The Jedi Code:

'There is no emotion; there is peace

There is no ignorance; there is knowledge

There is no passion; there is serenity

There is no death; there is the Force' "

* * *

As Luke gave in to sleep, his thoughts drifted back to Bakura... 

_They would be leaving soon; Luke knew it. Han and Leia had just gotten him and the dying Dev off the Ssi Ruuv ship and were landing on Bakura. The captured Imperial Governor Nereus was in Bakuran sustody. Nereus had tried to kill Luke by infesting him with parasites, but Luke had gotten rid of them, even if it had weakened him tremendously--however, Nereus didn't know that. When Nereus had seen Luke walk onto the ramp leading down from _The Millennium Falcon_, he'd been close to confrontation with Gaeriel; she had essentially told him that she--and, she implied, the planet of Bakura--'quit' the Empire. But as soon as the ex-Imperial-governor of Bakura had laid his eyes on Luke, he lost the words. Luke felt almost guilty at the utterly shocked gape upon Gaeriel's face._

_"No!" Nereus had exclaimed, horror twisting his heavy features. "You can't be here! Get back on board! You'll infest us all! You don't realize--"_

_Luke took one step down. He had already taken care of the parasitic infestation. "Gaeriel Captison belongs to Bakura, not the Empire."_

_Governor Nereus whirled toward Gaeriel. With speed that belied his age and bulk, he yanked the blast rifle out of her hands._

_Luke dropped into a crouch. Han had already drawn his blaster. Nerues fired twice. One bolt deflected off the _Falcon_'s hull. THe other flashed toward Luke, intersecting a green-white blade that whipped into its path and deflected energy back along its own course._

_Wilek Nereus fell back. Luke stumbled, too; he felt so weak. Gaeriel gasped. Leia froze in place. _Get up, Luke!_ she thought._

_R2 rolled forward at top speek, beeping and whistling. Slowly Luke pressed back to his feet. He held the saber upright in front of him, its hum the only sound Leia heard over her thumping heart. Luke still wasn't at ease; something felt wrong... a disturbance in the Force... Luke waved R2 back. Han leaned over the governor, blaster steady._

_Nereus called out one word: "Roarke!"_

_Suddenly, a man--completely covered in a dark cloak, hood, and mask that hid all but his eyes, lept from the shadows, red lightsaber blazing. Luke acknowledged that this was the disturbance he felt. It was strange; this Roarke felt a lot like Dev--somewhat strong as of yet, though with marvelous potential._

_The the saber-wielders circled each other, ignoring the gasps and cries from the crowd. "I am the sith, Darth Roarke." His voice was gruff._

_Luke sensed the building of energy in Han's blaster. "No, Han. I need to handle this. I you try to shoot, he'll only redirect it at any of us, and I can't count of the uncertainty of an unknown target. Understand?"_

_Han nodded reluctantly._

_In Luke's lapse of attention toward Han, Roarke mad his move. Luke got away, but not without a nasty wound to the shoulder. _Why couldn't I sense him coming? _Luke thought. _Can he hide his power? Is that possible?

... In his mind, Luke skipped the long and difficult battle that took place, but not forgetting the several other wounds he recieved on his legs, arms, and ribs. The final part of the battle had been simple enough...

_Roarke, in a desperate last attempt to win, lunged at Luke. As his saber pierced Luke's left side, just below the rib cage, Luke's saber bore into the sith's stomach. They stepped back from each other, both submitting to the fact that they both could die. Roarke had suddenly ran off and a few minutes later, a Imperial fighter zoomed out of the bay and into space. Luke collapsed as Leia, Han, Gaeriel, and a few others ran over to him. Luke also noted that Nereus was now dead; that much he could sense with the Force._

_"LUKE!" Leia had cried. "Luke, oh..."_

_"Don't worry, sis." Luke almost choked on the words. He would be fine. He had re-arranged the beams of the Darth Roarke's saber so that it didn't hit any vital organs. "I'm just tired."_

... That battle is where Luke had received all the scars that Hateya had seen. That battle, he would never forget...

_Several days later, Luke trying hard not to limp, they were all back up on the rooftop beside _The Millennium Falcon_. It was Luke's first time being out and about since the fight. Leia hoped that none of the others guessed that weakness, not dignity, set his pace._

_Leia stepped toward the Bakuran prime minister, Yeorg Captison--Gaeriel's uncle. Yeorg Captison snapped to attention, regaining poise lost from the trama of the previous days. "Prime Minister Captison," Leia said, "for this moment Bakura stands alone. If your people choose to rejoin the Empire..." she nodded aside at the captured Imperial Commander Thanas, "we will withdraw and leave you to conduct your own affairs. Commander Thanas may supervise your defense against the Ssi-ruuk, if they return before the Empire sends you another governor. You may continue alone, knowing the Ssi-ruuk might return. But if you choose to align yourself with the Alliance, we should negotiate a permanenty truce immediately."_

_Luke hated the politics that followed, summing up the entire process with four words: Bakura joined the Alliance. After a while, when formalities were over and an old woman was congratulating Luke, Gaeriel stepped up and glaced aside, then said to Luke with heartfelt relief, "You're alive--even with the parasites and the stab... You're alive. Did you--"_

_"Can we talk later? I've got a very sick... friend on board, being treated for burns." He had been referring to the dying Dev, who had so much potential in the Force. Even though Dev had been an ally of the Ssi-ruuk, he had turned away from them at the last minute and helped Luke defeat the alien invaders."_

Forget Dev Sibwarra,_ Leia wanted to shout. _He's dead. This girl has finally come around. Don't let her go, if you want her!"

_"Oh," Gaeriel exclaimed, stepping back. "Go ahead. I'll wait."_

_Leia frowned at her brother's back. He was already halfway up the ramp, walking stiffly with his head bowed._

_Gaeriel touched Leia's arm. "I've never met anyone like him, Your Highness."_

_"You never will again, if he leaves you here," Leia muttered. "Excuse me." She trotted after Luke._

_Luke could feel what Leia thought, and he knew what she wanted to tell him . . ._

... As he had watched Dev die, Luke realized that he _had_ to give up Gaeriel. They could never be together...

* * *

"Who is she?" asked Hateya at breakfast the next morning. "Gaeriel?" 

"A senator of Bakura."

"And?"

"I had to let her go..."

* * *

PUH-LEASE ( --exaggerated "please", for those who can't tell) **_REVIEW_**! i need to know what you think! 


	6. Very good

"And who exactly is this new sith lord?" asked Leia to the circle of leaders composing the temporary backing of the uprising New Republic.

"He goes by the name of Darth Roarke."

"...So he is a real sith? Not just a dark jedi?"

"Why? Do you know of him?"

"Yes. Jedi Master Luke Skywalker fought him on Bakura. We thought he had died..."

"He is hiding in an area of the galaxy known as Byss--"

Han sat up straight. "Byss?"

Leia cocked her brow. _He's awake? Must be important..._

"I've heard it before... a long time ago... on Nar Shaddaa, in my smuggling days. Mako mentioned it. It's supposed to be a big meeting place of all the really powerful guys running the Empire. Only certain people have access."

"So it exists?" asked one of the New Republic representatives.

"Mako said it did, so, yeah."

"Can this Mako person be trusted?"

"Sure."

Leia raised her brow.

"Probably."

Leia gave Han a hard look.

"Sort of... But I'm sure he wouldn't lie about something like that. He took his work very seriously."

Leia rolled her eyes.

"Look Leia, all I'm sayin' is that we should have a look into it."

Leia looked at the representatives. They nodded their agreement. Leia looked back and Han and sighed. "Alright. Tell Chewie to fire up the engines. I'll go send word to Mon Mothma and request two squads of starfighters and the Tantive V." _Note: V as in the roman numeral for 5, not the letter._

* * *

Luke turned in his lightsaber to the trooper. _Handing my **lightsaber** over... to a **trooper**, and **IMPERIAL TROOPER**!_ He shook his head and walked over to his favorite corner to mediate. _I need to look further beneath the surface of the complex... There's so much there..._

"You talk about her a lot. In your dreams." Hateya sat down next to Luke and sat in meditation formation. "Gaeriel."

Luke shrugged. His wish he didn't. The Force would never allow such a bond. He glanced at Hateya's slender body and inviting curves. _If only, if only..._

"What are you seeking when you meditate. I can tell you're searching something out. Or are you searching for inner peace?"

"Both, I suppose."

"It's dangerous to focus on two such strong things at once. Forget your emotion; what are you searching out?"

"Use the Force to look at the building, the prison complex."

Hateya complied. "Nothing special... or new. What of it?"

"Don't just look at it; feel it."

Hateya did as she was told, sighing. "There's nothing awry."

"Focus on the floor."

"... Oh... There is something weird going on there..."

"Try to focus _below_ the floor."

"... There's so much metal..."

"A very wise, very little green Jedi Master once told me that 'size matters not--the only difference is in your mind'. At first, it is _very_ difficult to see inside the basement, but try harder. Let the Force guide you."

Hateya sighed doubtfully. "And did he say anything helpful about _how_ to let the Force guide you through something that big?"

" 'Feel it you must. Feel the flow. Feel the Force around you, everywhere, waiting to be felt and used.' "

"Easier said than done. He must've had it easier."

"Well, it _was_ Master Yoda..."

"So you were really taught by _the_ Master Yoda? You're not just bluffing? Pulling a fast one over all of us?"

Luke was surprised. "Would I really lie to you about something like that?"

"I suppose not. But it's so hard to believe that one amongst us was actually taught by such an amazing jedi..."

* * *

"Commander Rieekan, are your squads ready?"

"Yes, General Solo. Awaiting your command, sir."

"Let's get outta here, then. Chewie, we're off."

The _Falcon_ and two sqauds of X-wing starfighters left the massive docking bay of the Tantive V, which had taken them as close to the rumored location of Byss as they dared go with the huge starship.

Leia laid her hands gently on Han's aching shoulders. "We've been searching for hours, Han. I don't thing we'll find it."

"We have to be close. Short-range Imperial fighters keep shooting at us on sight." Several minutes later, Leia shivered violently and almost collapsed. "Leia! You okay!"

After another short shudder, she nodded. "I feel a great disturbance--"

"--'in the Force', yeah. What does it mean?"

"That we _must_ be close."

A frantic voice yelled on the comm. "**Red Leader to General Solo! _Red Leader to General Solo!_**"

"What is it? What's wrong?"

"Imperial fighters! Mark 10-2! Tons of them!"

"Chewie, scanners!"

"How many, Han...?"

"General Solo to Red Leader and Green Leader. Pull back! Pull back! We can't win against that many! Chewie, get us outta here!" Han turned to Leia. "I think we found the right system. But if they call over sixty fighters a scouting group, there's no way we can infiltrate Byss now."

Leia nodded. "Get us back to the Tantive V."

Han cursed. "They're following us! Chewie, take control. Leia, come with me to the ion cannons."

They took several more hits. "Shields down to ten percent, Han! And half of Red and most of Green are gone!"

"Leia--" A fighter hit near Han's ion cannons.

"Han?... **_HAN_**!"

* * *

Hateya shook Luke awake. "I saw." She stared boldly into his eyes. "What are you planning?"

Luke grinned. "So you noticed... Good. Now, have you figured out why I stare out into the east every morning?"

Hateya nodded.

Luke grinned wider. "Very good."

* * *

Han groaned and sat up. "Take it easy, General Solo."

"Red Leader?"

He laughed. "Please, sir. Call me Rory. Are you all right?"

Han rubbed his head. "I guess so--Leia!"

"She's fine. Mon Mothma has her in a meeting right now. Other than that, she hasn't left your side. She must really love you, if ya' don't mind my saying, sir. It's just that I've never seen her as devoted to anyone as you, 'cept for maybe Skywalker, but they're brother and sister, afterall."

Han shrugged and stood. The med droid wheeled over to him, beeping and whirring. "Oh, shut up." Han walked by it and out the door.

"Han!" Leia ran over to Han and fondly embraced him.

Han tried his best not to stumble backwards. "Whoa, easy, Princess."

"How are you feeling?"

"Pretty good."

Leia smiled and kissed Han again. "Oh, Han, I meant to ask you about the new General. We really do need to pick one out... and if--when Luke gets back, he can just have the position again... but we really need to..."

"Any suggestions?"

"How about Rory, he's--"

"Yeah, Red Leader."

Leia was thoroughly surprised. "You actually know his name? How do you know him? Are you two friends or something--"

"I met him in the hospital room. Good kid. Needs to hold his tongue, though."

"I think you're the last one who needs to be saying that--"

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Sure. Let's go make sure the others agree he's fit for the job."

"I've already talked to them. They're the ones who suggested him."

Han shook his head. "You..."

"C'mon. Let's go find him and tell him ourselves."


	7. O Great and Powerful Master Sky

Caden cursed. "Borka, it happened _again_! Second time this week."

Borka walked over. "Damn weather keeps changing. Sandstorms used to blow from the west and in the early seasons. Recently, it's all the time and from the east."

Luke supressed a grin as he walked up to the exercise table. "G-17, six remotes, blindfold."

"Hold on. We have to dig the sand away from the containers again." The locked containers were placed under the table, facing the troopers, and east.

"Have you considered moving them? I mean, the sand keeps burrying them..."

Borka shot Luke a hard stare. "Shut up and wait. We'd have _you_ down here doing the digging if we didn't think you'd steal the laser swords."

Luke shrugged and, after a while, was finally handed his lightsaber, remotes, and blindfold. The ten minutes went by fast. In the two months that he had been there, Luke had found his strength improving vastly. Luke returned his lightsaber, shaking his right hand.

"What is wrong, Skywalker?" Ezhno turned to the trooper. "B-14, four remotes, blindfold."

"Nothin'. It's just that my hand has been acting up."

Ezhno continued to talk to Luke as he practiced with his lightsaber, it's thin, blue light showing signs of failure. Ezhno nodded. "I sense your dismay at the shape of my lightsaber. It is, indeed, rather old."

"But doesn't yours get repaired every now and then, like the others'?"

"Not always. I am not humanoid afterall, and you know how much the Imperials hate those who are not humanoids."

"Oh... That's why you get blamed for stuff frequently."

"Yes. But enough about that. What do you need to repair your hand?"

"Well, my repair kit, but they took that from me when I was brought here."

"Go to Perdita. She can help you get it back."

Luke nodded. "Thank you."

"It is no problem, Master Skywalker." Ezhno inclined his head as Luke turned around to find the human woman.

_That was odd... 'Master Skywalker'?..._

Perdita saw Luke walking towards her and headed his way. When she reached him, she inclined her head. "What can I do for you, Master Skywalker?"

"... Perdita... I--I..." Luke was shocked by the extreme show of respect, especially in a place where _everyone_ was on a first-name basis. Finally, he managed to ask her why.

"Well, Ezhno respects you so much that he just inclined his head and called you 'Master'. He does not give respect lightly. Besides, even Masters Yoda and Kenobi recognized you as a Master, so... that is what we will call you." After a pause, she asked again, "What can I do for you?"

"Ezhno told me to come to you about a repair kit for my hand. I had it when I came in..."

"Ah, yes. Borka took it off of ya' when you were brought in. I'll talk to Caden about getting it back to you." She inclined her head again and walked off.

"Uh... Thanks!" Luke called after her. As Luke walked to his corner, he was assaulted with head bows and other respectful gestures. He sighed heavily as he plopped down next to Hateya.

The Twi'lek woman stood and bowed low, her smooth, green skin almost radiating in the afternoon sun. "O Great and Powerful Master Skywalker, you really should not sit out in the sun. It is bad for your health." She smiled at him patronizingly.

"Very funny, Hateya." He shook his head. "Word sure does travel fast around here..."

"Of _course_ it does, especially now. You're the most exciting thing to happen to us in quite some years."

* * *

Luke flexed his hand at the breakfast table. It sure was getting hard to move, and the foe skin covering it was all but spent. In fact, the tension of it on the circuits was probably doing more harm than good. He had lost the nerve connections weeks ago, with no hope of ever having them again with that model. He was stuck with that hand...

Eron inclined his head as he sat down across and to the right of Luke. "So, Master Skywalker, tell us more about the Rebel Alliance. We get word every now and then here, but... it's rather incomplete and unrealiable."

Alden nodded. "Yes, Young Master. Clear some facts for us..."

Luke spent the good bit of three hours recounting his tales since he'd joined the Alliance and all events that had taken place, careful not to reveal any confidential information to the intent ears of the troopers surrounding them. While Luke enjoyed bragging as much as the next guy, he wished they would just shut up and leave him alone for a while. Perdita saved him. She bowed, handing him a small bundle of cloth. "Here it is, Master Skywalker."

Removing the cloth, Luke welcomed the sight of his repair kit. "Thanks, Perdita. I owe ya' big."

She blushed and bowed again. "It was nothing, sir. Glad I was able to help."

Luke didn't like everyone watching him repair his hand, or understand how it was so interesting, but he shrugged and peeled back the artificial skin. It barely came off in one peice. _Can't ever use _that_ again... Too bad..._ The circuits were in a tough shape. Luke cringed just looking at them. He shook his head and murmured to himself, "... don't know if I can repair this..."

Alden extended his own hand, palm up. "Master, if I may?"

"Huh...? Oh, look at my hand. Sure. You know about mechanics and circuits and all that stuff?"

"Decently enough. Da had a false foot, but it wasn't nearly as complex as this... All I can tell you is that the wires near the main relay are fused together, and they shouldn't be."

"They are?" Luke moved his hand back to his own face, and cursed. "They are." He sighed and began the tedious steps to separate them--a task that would have been a lot harder without his experience with droids and circuits back on his uncle and aunt's farm, and _especially_ without the senses he had developed in the Force. "... That explains the lack of sensation..."

Alden furrowed his brow. "Sensation? As in false nerves? Is that possible?"

"Sure it is. About three years ago, a man... oh. Nevermind. Anyway, it's a recent discovery in medicine. Really useful. But the false nerves aren't working right anymore. They haven't for a while. I was even having trouble with them back on the Tantive V--one of the Alliances main ships. Now the nerves are completely gone."

"And I bet all this sand hasn't helped either, huh Master Sky."

_Master Sky? What next!_ "Um... yeah, Eron. Either way, the wires aren't fused any more and I should be able to move it a little better." Luke flexed his hand. "Still a bit of work... but it's good enough for now..."

* * *

"Leia... Leia..." Han put his hand on Leia's shoulder. She was sitting in a circle of candles, meditating. "Hey, Leia..."

She opened her eyes. "Oh, Han. Sorry." She cleared her throat and walked over to the large window where the night lights of Coruscant greeted her. "What's going on?"

"The Mansurien delegation is about to land."

"Oh, I'll be right there." Leia pulled a brown cloak over her white dress. _Luke's old cloak... It even smells like him..._

Han sighed and held Leia in his arms. "How is he?"

"He's not hurt, that much I can tell. I think he's being held captive... but he's amongst pretty decent people... I'm sure of that." Onto her belt, she secured the small, makeshift lightsaber that Luke had taught her to make. "Let's go." Meeting up with Mon Mothma and other New Republic representatives, they made their way out to the landing pad. The seven delegates filed out of the ship. Leia made sure to keep note of their order since it seemed significant. Except for their clear skin, they were humanoid. Leia held back a cringe. While most of each delegate's body was covered in elegant robes, their heads and hands were bare, their clear skin giving a perfect view of humanoid anatomy just below the skin. _Don't stare, don't stare, don't stare..._ Leia commanded herself. Deciding to make the first move, since she would be dealing most with them, she walked up to the lead delegate and bowed. "I am Princess Leia, Jedi Knight, Senator and Representative in the New Republic."

The lead delegate returned the bow. "I am Lorien, The First, ruler of all Mansur. I have the power of elemental earth. It is broad for my people, thus my powers are special, hence my being the ruler." Leia knew he wasn't bragging, just being frank. She had dealt with such races before. He signaled with his hands for the others to come out from behind him and line up to his left in order from left to right. He signaled to the woman next to him.

She stepped forward. "I am Nyeki, The Second. I have the power of illusion, but only of those pre-existing illusions derived from the subject's own mind." As she stepped back, the man next to her stepped forward.

"I am Tertius, The Third. I have the power of healing, but only of mild to moderate surface wounds."

The woman next to him stepped forward, but The Third still remained. She cleared her throat, "I am Tess, The Fourth. I have the power of healing, but only of mild to moderate internal bleeding. Tertius is my twin. We work together to combine our powers for the greater good of Mansur." They both stepped back as the next delegate stepped forward, a man.

"I am Quito, The Fifth. I have the power of motion, but only of inanimate objects that are less than or equal to my own mass."

A young woman stepped forward. "I am Essien, The Sixth, daughter and eldest child of Lorien, The First. I have the power to control fire."

The last young man stepped forward as The Sixth remained where she was. "I am Ashon, The Seventh, son and youngest child of Lorien, The First. I have the power to create fire. My older sister and I work together to combine our powers for the greater good of Mansur." The Sixth and The Seventh stepped back.

Lorien nodded and turned to Leia. "If you would, Lady, show us our accomidations. We are rather weary and travel-sore. We wish to rest before the start of negotiations."

"Of course. This way."


	8. Finally some fun

A young Mansurien girl screamed as an Imperial trooper aimed his blaster at her head. He pulled the trigger--

"No!"

The trooper dropped his gun, the blast going elsewhere, shuddering as he fell to the ground.

Devante ran over to the little girl. "Are you okay?" She nodded. "Good. Now go to the shelters. Now!" She nodded again and ran to the nearest shelter complex. Devante turned to Chaka. "Thanks for the lightning. It was a strong amount this time. You are getting better."

The man inclined his head. "Thank you, Captain, sir."

"Direct more lightning to me, now!"

Chaka obliged without question. Devanted controlled that energy and sent it raging through the bodies of three more troopers.

* * *

Devante took his seat. "Good. We are all here. Let us begin."

The captains of the Seven Gifted Squadrons all sat around a circular table. A man on Devante's left with a poorly healed scar on his left cheek stood and looked at Devante.

Devante nodded. "We recognize you, Paytah, Captain of Fire Squadron."

"We are in dire need of more soldiers, even those will little talent at all can still fight. I suggest a conscription requirement. If we are to win this battle, we need greater numbers. If the people want peace, they need to be willing to fight--and even die--to obtain that peace."

Next, to Paytah's left, a stunning woman with intense gray eyes stood and gazed impatiently at Devante, daring him to ignore her.

As Paytah sat down, Devante slowly nodded to the woman. "We recognize you, Gaia, Captain of Earth Squadron."

"I dissagree. Consciption requirements bring in people who have no idea how to direct their affinities and use them in combat. It would be genocide of our own people. You would be laying them out like new born babes. They would be injured and even killed without hesitation."

A lanky man on Devante's right gracefully rose, youthful but wise, in the prime of his life, with deep blue eyes to match the veins that could be seen through his clear skin. He nodded to Gaia and she elegantly took her seat. The lanky man gazed at Devante.

Devante nodded to him. "We recognize you, sir, Zhi, Captain of Healing Squadron."

Zhi cautiously chose his words, finally deciding on simply, "To require a conscription would be mortally devastating to our population." He retook his seat as the others inclined their heads to him."

A muscular woman with a fierce look and a thin unibrow to Gaia's left stood and gazed at Devante.

Devante nodded to her. "We recognize you, Namazzi, Captain of Water Squadron."

"I agree with Captain Paytah." She nodded curtly and sat down.

To her left, another burly man stood and gazed at Devante.

"We recognize you, Bavol, Captain of Air Squadron."

Bavol nodded his head to Namazzi. "As do I. I believe Captain Paytah is correct." As Bavol sat back down, the woman between him and Zhi stood. Fire seemed to flare around her.

Devante nodded to the woman second to his right, cautious of her anger. "We recognize you, Imogene, Captain of Illusion Squadron."

Passionately she stared into the eyes of each Paytah, Namazzi, and Bavol. "Are you all stark mad! You would throw away the lives of your own people!" She turned to intensify her gaze onto Devante. "And what say _you_!"

Devante slowly rose and gazed at Zhi.

Zhi nodded to Devante. "We recognize you, sir, Devante, Captain of Lightning Squadron."

"If we do not have more warriors, the lives of the people will not matter because they will be dead. The force of the troopers is very strong, stronger than we have planned to ever fight if the need actually arose. We are not ready for this war because we know nothing of war. We are a peacful peoples who use our powers to make life easier." He nodded to Paytah. "While we do need more people..." He nodded to Zhi. "... the consiquences of untrained warriors fighting Imperials would be devastating." He slowly panned his gaze around the table. "But we need the people."

Imogene stood, foregoing all tradition. "So you actually _agree_!" At an intense glare from _both_ Devante and Zhi, she lowered her head and reseated herself. "Appologies."

Devante, still standing, smiled. "No worries, Captain. Your passion is much needed in these time, and your spirit. Your faithfullness to the people is to be admired as well. But there is a way to mediate. We will conscript, but only those with enough power to be of use. Before they are even sent out to fight, they will go through rigorous training so as not to be throwing their lives away. Also, I suggest opening up the conscription as less of a requirement, and more of a request." He held up his hand to silence Paytah. "For the time being, at least... You'll find people more accommodating if they come into something of their own free will." Devante paused and looked around the room. "Are we agreed... for now?"

All but Imogene nodded and slapped an open palm onto the table. Imogene hesitated, and--for a moment--it looked as if she would lay a closed fist upon the table. But slowly, she nodded and added her open palm to the others'.

* * *

Hateya casually took Luke's arm as she joined him in the yard after exercises. "So, Master Sky..."

_Ignore it, Luke. Ignore it._ Luke smiled cheerfully. "Yes, Hateya?"

She pouted. "You're no fun... Anyway, did you notice the new lightsaber containers, Master Sky?"

"Why, yes, I did, Hateya. Facing west now."

She leaned in close to his ear. "Facing us..." She winked at him. "Ezhno realizes what you're doing, too. I think Alden, as well."

"Well, don't go spreading the word too much until all is in order... please."

Hateya let go of Luke's arm and bowed. "As you wish, Master Sky," she said with a cruel smile.

"You..." Hateya turned around and went off to the Force knows where. _There she goes again..._ He stared after her. _If only, if only..._ He shook his head and went to meditate in his corner.

* * *

Leia discreetly elbowed Han to wake him up, then beamed a winning smile to Lorien and the delegates. "Then it's settled. We are allies. A fleet will be ready to assist you in three days. On that third day, that fleet will escort you back to Mansur to help you in your battle against the Imperials."

The group stood from their seats in the meeting chamber and prepared to depart. "Will you be joining that fleet, my lady?" asked Ashon with an air of youthful hope.

Han put his arm around Leia's waist. "Of course she is. We wouldn't be a _husband_ and _wife_ team if she stayed behind, now would we?"

Ashon lowered his eyes and bowed his head. "To be sure." He glanced Lorien, who signaled for The Seventh to lead the delegates from the chamber.

Han leaned in close to Leia's ear. "_Finally_, some fun!"

* * *

Sweat poured down Luke's brow in the dead of night as he concentrated the Force on the clouds above. _Even if they've already changed the containers, I still have to keep these sandstorms up so they don't suspect anything..._ After a while, be took a deep breath and released his hold on the clouds. _That should do it..._

Someone knelt beside the side of Luke's cot. "Got a moment, Sky?"

Luke sat up and rolled over on his left to face his visitor. "Eron?"

"I may not have much control to speak of when it involves the Force, but I sure as Hell have good senses. I can clearly see what you're doing."

"Oh?"

"Help me sense more below the surface of the complex. I don't have enough control. I want to see what you, Hateya, Ezhno, and Alden have been looking at, but I'm not strong enough. Now, don't give me Yoda Quotes; I know them. I simply don't have enough control. You can sense that. I know you can. You don't have to sugar-coat it for me."

Luke nodded slowly.

... After a couple hours, Luke managed to help Eron find his way through the metal below the complex. Eron tried to catch his breath. "... So... _that's_ your... plan... And that's why... you've been... creating... storms from the east... and holding back... those from the west..."

"Yes."

Eron smiled. "Everyone always suspected you'd be the one to bust us out." He stood. "When you have a plan in order, let us know. We will all stand by your side when you need us without asking any questions."

Luke smiled. "Thanks."

Eron turned around and started walking back to his own cot.

"Eron?"

Eron turned back around to face Luke. "Yeah, Sky?"

"Why?... Why do you trust me? Why does everyone trust me?"

Eron sighed. "It's true that you're powerful, wise, balanced in the Force, and have fought the Dark Side with all your heart and soul--and those are important. Now this may seem cliche, but what truly matters is what you have brought us: hope--something that, before you came, we hadn't had for a very long time." Eron bowed. "Good night, Master Sky."

_

* * *

Note: I skipped the boring political fluff. I don't like political fluff. If you do, too bad. Find political fluff elsewhere, because you won't find it here... because I loathe it... Thank you._


	9. A prison break

The atmosphere around the grounds was uneasy. Not many were doing exercises and all seemed wary of anything that moved. Luke sighed. _They're gonna blow it..._ Two especially fidgety jedi--the youngest no more than few years older than Luke--were the human older brother / younger sister duo, Cirabein (the brother) and Jimiaci (the sister), Cirab and Jim for short. Luke sighed again. Eron, Hateya, and Alden were done with their exercises and Ezhno was finishing up his. As Ezhno walked over to the table to turn his saber in, Luke asked for his. "G-17." Borka handed Luke his as Caden grabbed Ezhno's, but the Togruta jedi held firmly. Shrugging, Luke flicked on his own lightaber and held it at Borka's throat. Ezhno followed Luke's lead and held his own to Caden.

Borka laughed. "You fools! Don't you see the eight troopers with blasters!" Borka nodded to the armed troopers.

Four shot at each Luke and Ezhno, but neither were hit, and neither had moved their lightsabers from their positions at Borka and Caden's throats. Luke grinned. Hateya had deflected the shots from Luke and Alden those from Ezhno. Only two of the guards, Borka, and Caden were left in the yard and were promptly tied up. "So, Eron, you finally managed to unlock some of the containers."

"It's not so easy, O Master Sky."

Luke flicked his left hand and the rest of the containers opened; all the prisoners drew their lightsabers to themselves and flicked them on.

"Oh, wonderful, Sky. Just show me up why don't ya'." Eron smiled at Luke. _I'll never be as good as him... bastard._

Captain Carnig ran out of the complex with thirty guards behind him. "What's going on here!"

Luke, lightsaber blazing, slowly walked up to Carnig and took his blaster. "A prison break."

* * *

Chaka shivered. He hated going on scouting missions with Adhira and Damini, Devante's undercaptains.

Adhira, First Undercaptain in the Squadron of Fire, snapped at him. "Chaka! Give me energy!"

"Y-Yes, mam."

She grinned cruelly at the half-alive trooper at her feet, and with the flick of her wrist, targeted the energy straight to the man's heart. "A quick death... How boring. I wish I had your powers, Damini."

The other woman, Damini, Second Undercaptain in the Squadron of Fire, shrugged as concentrated the left-over energy from Adhira's attack and focused it on the face and eyes of the trooper below him. He screamed in terror and ripped off his helmet. Chaka tried not to throw up as he beheld the sizzling face of the enemy, then slowly sank to the ground. _What a way to die..._

Adhira laughed. "Why did you get graced with your powers. To kill one with pure energy by attacking external organs such as skin and eyes... Such a thrill; while I am stuck with the ability to kill one by focusing energy on an internal organ, primarily the heart." She glanced at Chaka. "At least it's useful, destructive--not just the channeling of energy." The two undercaptains laughed as they continued to patrol their designated areas.

Chaka shivered again. _Why me...?_

* * *

A red-headed, gorgeous woman entered the fire-decorated office. "Captain Paytah of Fire Squadron... I still cannot wrap my mind around that. Less than thirty and already an Elemental Captain..." She sensuously wrapped her arms around Paytah's neck.

"Oh? Is that so, Nuri? Pardon, _First Undercaptain_ Nuri of Fire Squadron..." He bent his neck and locked his lips with hers. After a while, he straightened his neck and smiled down at Nuri, staring intently into her golden-green eyes. "... Able to spark fire on anything remotely flamable... I do believe you have sparked more than my heart, my dear..."

"Oh? Is that so?" They embraced again; Paytah quickly led Nuri to his private chambers.

* * *

"Three pints," Gaia commanded the tavern girl. Shaking her head, she faced her two sub-officers. Nodding to the male, she asked, "What do you think, Damek?"

"I cannot make heads or tails of it, Captain. I'm just glad it was you in that room and not me."

"Be careful that you do not think too much like that. As First Undercaptain, it is your job to take over lead if something happens to me, which is highly likely nowadays." She gave the tavern girl nine coppers for the ale, then turned to her pale-eyed female companion. "What about you, Zola? I know you are new to being Second Undercaptain, but you need to be more involved in affairs than other Captains allow their Undercaptains to be."

After a moment, Zola stammered out, "I-I suppose, Captain, that I am... s-simply _horrified_ that someone would even... well, even suggest such a horrible thing." The last part she blurted so fast that Gaia could barely understand her.

Gaia simply smiled and nodded. Eying her Undercaptains, she became truly appreciative of the team the three of them made. She herself could take rocks and/or compressed earth and explode it into a thousand pieces; First Undercaptain Damek could levitate anything of the earth element, which made Gaia's ability become even more devastating against an enemy; Second Undercaptain Zola, while meek, had an amazing capability to compact even the loosest of earth into almost solid stone. They made a great team.

* * *

Three women rushed into the healing station, the one in the middle being supported by the other two. "CAPTAIN ZHI!" one of them cried.

Zhi came rushing out. "What happened, Captain Imogene."

"Ambush. Vonda is hurt. Bad. Can you help her?"

Zhi helped Vonda onto a cot and sighed as he saw the massive damage to not only her heart and lungs, but also to her intestines and stomach. The woman was spewing up blood. He turned to an assistant. "Go fetch First Undercaptain Galena, Second Undercaptain Asa, and young Jason." Not two minutes later, the three of them came rushing over to help. Naturally, Zhi tended to Vonda's heart, moderate to severe heart injuries being his specialty; Galena tended to the lungs, moderate to severe lung injuries being her specialties; Asa saw to the stomach; Jason concentrated on the intestines. But for all their work, it was no use. An hour later, Vonda was dead. Jason laid his hand on Imogene's shoulder. "I am sorry, Captain Imogene. We did all that we could. She was just too far gone."

Imogene held back tears as she pulled a sheet over Vonda's head. Turning to the other woman, she cleared her throat. "Second Undercaptain Pratima, I hereby promote you to the rank of First Undercaptain. Go find young Toshi and inform him that he now holds the responsiblities of Second Undercaptain."

"Yes, mam." Pratima was trying to hold back tears of her own.

Imogene could hold in her emotion no longer and gave in to Jason's comforting embrace. "... _Such is war..._ _Civilians should not have to meet such a fate..._"

* * *

Tess and Tertius stood at one of the many large windows of the Tantive V. "We should be entering Mansurien space soon, Tess. How do you think the battle is going?"

"I think that as soon as we land, we need to contact Captain Zhi, Tertius."

"Agreed. Much blood has been shed in our absence, of that I am certain."

"Agreed."

* * *

Ashon walked up to Essien. _Everyone seems to be gazing out these windows..._

"There is nothing better to do." Essien turned around. "Yes, Seventh? What is it you desire?"

"... Sister?"

Essien tilted her head sideways and stared at her younger brother. "What is wrong, Ashon?"

"Why does father hate me?"

"What?"

"Why does he never recognize me? No matter what I do, all he ever does is compare me to you."

Essien sighed. "He is a man and a leader. Though he may not realize it, when he sees destructive powers, he views it as being of greater strength. When he sees control, he views it as being of greater potential."

"But is not the creation of fire strong even on its own?"

"It is, dear brother... Father just does not see that. He sees me control fire and take it wherever I want it to go, and he sees me as powerful."

"But I can create fire anywhere, anytime, on any surface. That's almost as good as your power, but he treats me as if I am merely what he settles for. All he ever does is appreciate you. He neither loves nor respects me."

"I cannot say much about the love of Father, for he rarely has any since mother died, but he _does_ respect you, else you would not be one of the Seven. He knows your power, dear brother."

"But he cares for yours more."

Essien sighed. _Why did mother have to die? If she were still alive, Father would not be so cold... and Ashon would not feel so downtrodden and unappreciated... Well, at least Ashon and I have each other... That's more than most siblings can say..._


	10. He's dead Jim

Luke wished more than ever that Leia were there...

"Sky!"

Luke jumped back to his senses in time to deflect a blaster shot. They were in the sheltered part of the corridor that led to the stairs that led to the lower decks of the complex. Ten more troopers guarded the entrace to the stairs. "Okay, this is getting rediculous. Who cares about survivors." Luke charged out and deflected all ten blasters. It was easier than the six remotes: 1) he was not blindfolded and 2) he knew exactly where the shots were coming from because the troopers weren't moving around. In seconds, the ten troopers were dead.

"Sky... did you have to...?"

"Buthain, when you've been in an all-out war with these guys for so long as I have been, you start to not really care if you kill them if it means that a few more of your own men will survive. Let's move."

Cir and Jim were not far behind Luke on their decent down the stairs. "Whadya think, Cir?" whispered Jimiaci to her brother.

"I think he's absolutely right, Jim. These jedi can hardly be called such anymore; prison has made them soft." Cir pushed forward to Luke. "Master Sky, though it may seem that the Empire didn't care about this prison, there are a total of over one hundred troopers on this base, plus Carnig."

"Well, we have Carnig. We got Borka, Caden, the eight from the grounds, the thirty from Carnig's guards, and the ten we just got at the stair entrace."

"But that's only fifty. We have fifty more to get through, and only you, Ezhno, Alden, Hateya, and Eron are useful with a lightsaber, and Hateya and Eron are back with some of the others guarding the prisoners from the grounds. Most of use just are out of practice, not that we were ever in combat practice to begin with."

Luke nodded. "I keep forgetting that you all were taken so young... But we can manage. I've been worse off. Ezhno, Alden, stay up front with me for now. When we reach a more open area, Ezhno protect the left side and Alden the right. Okay?"

"Got it."

"As you wish, Master Skywalker."

Cir shook his head. "I hate to be a downer, but can we really pull this off? With you, we have a total of fourty-one jedi. Hateya, Eron, and ten others are staying back with prisoners, so that leaves us twenty-nine with only three good fighters--you, Ezhno, and Alden."

Luke sighed and halted everyone. "Cir is right about one thing, everyone. We are vastly outnumbered in quantity and skill. I should have mentioned this before. I forget I'm not working with trained soldiers here." There were scoffs of indignation at that last comment. "This is dangerous and people may, and probably will, die. If you don't want to do this, then leave."

Buthain snorted. "And let _you_ get all the glory, Sky? I think not. Besides, you don't think we'll let you get away with that soldier comment do you? We'll prove to you that twenty-nine half-trained jedi beat one hundred of your best soldiers any day!"

Cir threw his fist in the air. "Hear, hear to that!"

The rest agreed readily enough.

Luke nodded. "Then let's go."

At the bottom of the stairs was another corridor, this one more narrow than the last. Luke took lead and Cir took rear guard. _Why do I have to take rear guard? Does he think I'm a bad fighter? There's no one coming from the rear..._

Luke felt a disturbance... not a strong one, but one just strong enough to let him know that there was danger. "Everyone, spread out more." If they got attacked, the last thing they needed was to be clumped together.

Cir paused for a moment. "Why?"

Luke's reply was interrupted by blasters as three troopers dropped down from the ceiling tiles. A couple of the jedi toward the rear were quick enough to send their blasts back at the troopers, but not before several jedi were wounded... and one dead.

* * *

Han, Leia, young Tuari, and several other delegates of the New Republic were led to a secure undergroung facility. Their small cargo ship had been lucky enough to enter Mansurien space without being detected, the Tantive V being left just out of Imperial sensor range. Tuari sighed as political talk continued between Senator Leia and Lorien. _I'm so bored... Why did I have to come along? 'Because the battle and diplomatic experience would be good for me...' Yeah, right... I think Leia senses something... But does that mean that something will happen to the Tantive V? Then why did she leave everyone else there! ... No... that can't be it... then what is it?_ They paused for a moment so that Lorien could talk to some security personel. Leia turned around to face Tuari.

"You wonder why I brought you here, young Tuari."

"... Yes, I do."

"Use the Force. What do you think?"

"... Danger..."

"And you wonder why I didn't evacuate the whole of the ship."

"Yes."

Leia smiled. "Use your senses. You will see."

* * *

Jimiaci backed away in terror and Luke knelt over Cirabein's limp figure, trying to feel a pulse. "Is he hurt bad, Master Sky...?" Jim managed to squeak out.

After a moment, he shook his head and looked up at Jimiaci. "He's dead, Jim." She fell into a fit of tears; Perdita rushed over to comfort her, but to no avail. Luke sighed and stood. "We need to keep moving... but we'll set his body aside and give him a proper burial when all the troopers are dealt with. I promise." Jimiaci didn't respond. "_She's no good to us like this._" He turned to the three injured jedi. "Are you hurt badly?" They all shook their heads. "Good; stay here with her. We will be back as soon as we can." He turned to the others. "At the end of this corridor is a wide open room, the main deck for everything. There are three branching corridors that lead to one more room each, so another three total, but each of those three additional rooms has three other floors below it. So: one main room, three small rooms, four decks per small room. Got it?" There were half-arsed nods and disbelieving smiles. Luke sighed. "Just follow my lead. Get into groups of..." _Twenty-nine... minus one dead... twenty-eight... minus three injured... twenty-five... not including Ezhno, Alden, and me... twenty two... three groups would be two groups of seven and one of eight..._ "... groups of seven, seven, and eight. The eight weakest with me, and the two stronger groups of seven with each Ezhno and Alden--and now is not the time to lie about your skills. Got it now?" They all nodded. "Good."

It went over far easier than expected, ending with only one minor injury in Luke's group, and two moderate injuries in each Ezhno and Alden's. Then again, Luke was fighting dead-on and acting as a protector to the weaker jedi in his group, while Ezhno and Alden's groups were all acting like soldiers... Anyway, it was rather a mundane battle, as far as Luke was concerned. There were twelve troopers guarding each additional corridor to the smaller rooms with four levels and eleven guarding the immediate entrance that led them into the _main_ room. Luke, Ezhno, and Alden easily killed those eleven. Then, as they moved into the main room, Luke charged forward, Ezhno charged left, and Alden charged left. It was over in no time. Ezhno and Alden were smart enough to follow Luke's lead and leave no survivors, not when they could join the other Imperials and rise up to challenge the jedi.

After tending to the wounded the jedi glanced around. There was one medium-class Rebel Prison Transport in the main room. That was it. They gathered around Luke, some asking him what to do next, some too stunned at their surroundings to even talk. "Spread out. Explore the three extra rooms--but only briefly--and report back here. All Imperials seem to be accounted for, but just in case, be on your guard."


	11. Breech of security in sector five

Someone knocked softly on the chamber door. Lorien nodded to The Seventh to open it up. A messanger stepped through the threshold. "Pardons, First," he said bowing, then nodding to the other Mansurien leaders and to the New Republic delegation, "and The Seven, and the delegates of the New Republic. We are receiving a coded transmission from the Tantive V."

Lorien glanced at Leia, who nodded. "Very well. We will view it in here." Lorien closed the door behind the man. "Senator?"

"I have the decoding sequence." She signaled to the console in the center of the chamber's large table. "Young Tuari, please input the sequence. And pay close attention to the message."

Tuari did as he was told. A young Rebel soldier appeared on the screen. Tuari recognized him as the comm officer from the ship. "My lady, Senator Leia, there has been a security breech in sector five."

She nodded. "Exactly where?"

Tuari had the feeling that she already knew.

"In young Padowan Tuari's room. Nothing was taken. Nothing was damaged."

Leia nodded again. "Very well. Proceed as normal. I know what the intruder was after."

"Yes, my Lady."

The comm officer did not intend for his thoughts to be known: _Jedi... Think they know everything... Wish they'd tell the rest of us what's going on..._

But the thoughts were so strong that Leia couldn't help but know them. "Oh, and please don't take offense that I won't tell you what's going on. It's classified information."

"... Um... Of course, my Lady. Think nothing of it." _How did she know!_

Leia supressed a smile. She had wanted to say something to tick him off... that would have been funny... but not wise... She sighed. "Very well. Leia out."

"Tantive V out."

Tuari hesitantly met Leia's eyes. "He was after me, wasn't he, Lady Leia?"

"Yes, Tuari. The intruder was Darth Roarke. He was looking to recruit you to the Dark Side of the Force. Now do you understand why I brought you?"

"Yes, my Lady."

The Mansuriens look confused. Lorien was the first to ask, "How did you know?"

Half-asleep, Han answered, "It's a jedi thing. Sometimes they can sense or catch glimpses of the future."

"But it is more prudent to keep your mind on the present," replied Leia. "Now, back to battle tactics. I was thinking of placing our own troops... here... here... here... here... here... and here."

Lorien nodded. "Very well. The first group will go with Fire Squadron, the second group will go with Earth Squadron, the third group will go with Water Squadron, the fourth group will go with Lightning Squadron, the fifth with Illusion Squadron, and the sixth with Air Squadron."

"Good. Each of our groups will consist of thirty people. Is that too much?"

"That is perfect. Each of our own Sqadrons have about sixty members."

Leia nodded curtly. "Then I will immediately have the troops sent over little by little to bypass the Imperial security so they can meet the people they will be working with."

"You may take our two stealth shuttle crafts. They cannot be seen by Imperial scanners, though, unfortunately, we only have two built. They are very difficult to engineer."

"That would be much appreciated. Though we will continue to use our own shuttles as well to get this over with as quickly as possible... the transportation, I mean."

"Of course, Lady." Lorien stood and bowed. "Sixth and Seventh will see to it that you are well taken care of."

* * *

Everyone reported what they had seen, which only confirmed what Luke has sensed. Of course there was the one medium-class Rebel Prison Transport--and a rather old one at that. In the left chamber were a lot of supplies on three of the levels, and extra laserpistols and other such weapons on the fourth. In the middle chamber that Luke attacked, there were fighters and other small crafts: twenty TIE fighters, ten TIE crawlers, ten TIE maulers, fourty-two various types of landspeeders, two TIE bombers, and three TIE interceptors. All of them were broken. But their weapons still worked, fortunate for the jedi. In the right chamber were big crafts and other mechanical stuff and repair items. There were ten crafts: two T-16 skyhoppers, two T2-B repulsor tanks, two bounty-hunter pursuit vessels, one Tartan-class partrol cruiser, and three Imperial landing crafts. Those were broken too. In fact, most everything in the entire lower-complex couldn't fully run on it's own, and with no hope of ever making them opperational. But Luke didn't need them to work. He needed their parts. "Good job, now, I brought my old X-wing over and landed it in the grounds. I want everyone to study how it's made, and memorize it as best a humanly--" He cut off his sentence, looking at the aliens in the room. "--... as best as possible."

* * *

Didier fell in love the moment he saw Captain Paytah's first subofficer. _Nuri... such a beautiful name... How I wish _I_ could be the one she wanted... I wonder if she's seeing anyone... I wonder if she would join the Rebel Alliance..._

Yukio fell in love the moment he saw Captain Paytah's first subofficer...

* * *

"I am Gaia, Captain of Earth Squadron. This is First Undercaptain Damek and Second Undercaptain Zola." Gaia explained all of their powers, the roles of the other members, and what the New Republic soldiers were expected to do. "Do you understand."

Some nodded, some saluted, and a few murmured, "Yes, mam." They weren't used to fighting with women. Women didn't fight in the New Republic / Rebel Alliance. Except for Lady Leia. Leia _always_ fought...

Dmitri stared at Zola. _She must be new... She's shuffling her feet and keeping her hands behind her back so that no one can see that she's twiddling with them..._

Raif and Tuan whispered back and forth, completely bored out of their minds, even though they were in the presence of a great and powerful--if odd-looking--race.

"Is there a problem, soldiers?" Gaia practically screamed.

The both stood up straight and yelled, "No, mam!"

"Good. Now, on with your assignments..."

* * *

Raziya adjusted his blasters. "I agree, Captain Namazzi." The Water Squadron Captain and one of the New Republic soldiers were off in a corner talking after Namazzi's brief description of their duties. "A soldier should be ready to die for his--or her--country, planet, alliance, whatever. If they can be protected by soldiers, then they can become a soldier and protect others."

"Exactly. It's a two-way street. Now if only our leaders could see it that way..."

* * *

Elek and the three other soldiers that were with him by Imogene were fascinated by the Captain of Illusion Squadron. The concept of it all was incredible, especially the way she explained it. The three other soldiers were brothers and known as the Adel brothers of Alderaan, and being from Alderaan, they were quite loyal to Princess Leia. They had joined the Alliance forces just before the tragic destruction of their planet by the Death Star. From youngest to oldest, they were Sacha, Sandor, and Socorro, ages twenty-one, twenty-five, and twenty-nine. However, as First Undercaptain Pratima _prompty_ noted... they looked exactly the same age, as if they were triplets. And while Sacha loved the comment--and Sandor couldn't care less--Socorro decided that he _definately_ did not care for the First Undercaptain.

* * *

Captain of Air Squadron Bavol and Ban of the New Republic fully dissagreed on the topic on conscription. Bavol liked the idea. Ban hated it. Bavol and Ban didn't want to be in the same group, but it couldn't be helped. Bavol and Ban became enemies. That's all there is to say about that.

* * *

Amarus, Luthando, and Prem hovered around Devante. They adored him. He was kind, generous, neutral in arguments so that he could settle it, and he always devised the most suitable and accomodating solution. He was a great guy. But Devante seemed to have his eye on a young, new soldier in his ranks. Jorn didn't like that. In fact, he didn't like Devante at all. He pulled Luthando asside. "I don't trust him."

"That's only because you like that young soldier woman too, you idiot. Besides, you don't trust anybody."

"That's not true."

"Name three people that you would trust your life with."

"Well... you because I've known you forever. Prem is trustworthy too... somewhat... And... and... I would trust Jedi Master Luke Skywalker."

"First off, you barely trust me, and not with your life. Secondly, you practically hate Prem. And finally, you trust the Jedi because they have the Force--everyone trusts them. Besides, it's hard to trust a dead man."

"He's not dead. Senator Leia believes he's still alive, and so does General Han. That's enough for me."

Luthando rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I'm going back to Devante. He's a really good guy. You should get to know him."

"I don't trust him."

Luthand shrugged and left Jorn where he was to go back and talk to Captain Devante. "You're loss," he called over his shoulder.

* * *

Everyone gathered around Luke. "Now does everyone know who's doing what?" They all confirmed that they did. "Those that are gathering scrap-metal, report to Hateya. Those that are gathering small, hand-held weapons like blasters and such, report to Eron. Those that are gathering specialized equipment, report to Alden. Those that are gathering craft weapons, report to Ezhno. Perdita, you and your people work on food supplies. Those in charge of construction, report to me. Hateya, Eron, Alden, Ezhno, and Perdita, report to me every half-hour. Now spread out and let's get this moving._

* * *

Note: I know that the past few chapters involving the Mansuriens may bore some of you, but trust me, it's neccessary. So yeah... get over it, those of you PMing me and telling me to make it more action-packed. Trust me, there is a LOT of that to come._

_Thank you,_

_The Author_

_P.S.- the characters Perdita and Pratima are NOT RELATED IN ANY WAY! their names just so happen to sound similar. Perdita is a human jedi. Pratima is the first undercaptain of illusion in the Mansurien army. End of story. Stop PMing me about that as well. Thanks._


	12. Traitor

_now, without further ado: THE NEXT CHAPTER!!!_

* * *

The tunnels beneath the earth began to shake. Leia turned her head behind her, yelling over the noise to Sixth and Seventh. "Essien! Ashon! This base is no longer secure! We have sent word to our people to get out of here. You should—"

"Do not worry, Lady Leia," replied Essien.

"The order has already been given," finished Ashon. "The First is awaiting us in a secure location, known only to The Seven, and now to you and General Han."

"And Padowan Tuari?"

"He may accompany you as well. But none others."

Leia nodded curtly as they continued down the corridor. A while later, safely in a small chamber deep underground, the exhausted Seven, Leia, Han, and Tuari sat around a makeshift table discussing the nights events. "I thought you said that the base was secure."

"It was, we thought. We had only key personnel and the Captains. We do not know what has happened."

"I'm sorry to say this, First, but I believe that you have a traitor in your ranks."

The Seven exchanged precarious glances.

"Not to say that it's us," Han quickly added.

"We do not suspect you… However… long have we suspected that a traitor had infiltrated our ranks—long before you arrived—but just how deeply, we did not know.

* * *

Paytah lowered his Imperial Trooper blaster. "That will teach you to mess with my Nuri." Turning, he walked away from the bloody corpse.

* * *

Luthando shook his head. "It still worries me that she hasn't contacted us."

Devante laid a comforting hand on Luthando's shoulder. "I know that she is with the Seven, so she is safe. Do not worry. Besides, we have our own problems right now." He motioned to the bunker the Lightning Squadron and the Rebels with them were hidden in.

Prem walked over to Jorn, beaming.

"What are _you_ so happy about, you idiot."

"Calm down, Jorn. Don't ruin my fun."

"You're fun?"

"You know Lily?"

"That new officer that _everyone_ loves? Duh. Who doesn't."

"Well…" he grinned, a prideful smirk on his face.

"…"

"Think about it for a second… a lonely girl, scared and looking for compassion…"

"…_No_, you _didn't_!"

"Yes, I did. It was easy."

"She's Devante's love-interest, you idiot! He'll kill you!"

"Take it easy, Jorn. I'm not the only one pairing up. I heard that Didier laid some chick named Nora…Nori…Nuri, something like that. She's an undercaptain in Fire. Things like this happen—"

A short burst of static rung clear on Luthando's communicator. "Luthando, this is Yukio. Do you copy? Over."

The room hushed as Luthando grabbed the comm link. "Yukio! I copy, I copy! It's great to hear from you. We can't contact anyone."

"Everyone is holed up in bunkers. I rigged a signal booster, so now I can get ahold of people in a certain proximity, namely you. I can tell you how to make one and once everyone one has made one, then we can all communicate and possibly reach Lady Leia. Any word from her? Over."

"No word, but great idea. Let's get started. Where is Didier? Over."

"…"

"Yukio?"

"He's dead. Over."

"…_Dead_? How?!"

"Trooper…… Now about the booster."

"…Right…"

* * *

"…Tantive V calling Leia… Tantive V calling Leia…" The comm officer turned around. "Still no answer, sir, and we've been at it for hours."

The other officer nodded. "Alright. Then proceed according to Alliance protocol. Send out a distress signal on all Alliance frequencies."

"Yes, sir."

* * *

Three minor Jedi stood about ten feet away from Luke, not knowing what to do. He was upside down, just resting there on his head and hands. He looked so peaceful that they didn't want to interrupt him…

But in truth, Luke's mind was reeling with images. Eventually, he slowly lowered himself and sat cross-legged on the compacted sand. "Leia's in trouble…" he spoke softly.

The three minor Jedi looked from one to another uneasily.

"I know that the comm systems are ready for the first test. Tell them to proceed."

"Yes, Master Sky," they quickly stammered out at once, scurrying off.

Luke relaxed his entire body thoroughly before standing and walking over to the huddle of Jedi, which parted for him instantaneously. After a slight "bloop" noise, the jedi hovering over the comm system exclaimed, "Receiving a Rebel Alliance distress signal, sir!"

Luke nodded slowly. "Everyone prepare for departure. We leave in twenty hours. Someone needs our help."

_

* * *

SOOOOOOOOOO sorry for the delay!! School got the better of me, I suppose. But I should be better about updates from now on. But there are only like 5-10 more chapters left in this thing. Or I may continue it. Who knows._


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